Twitter FAQ's

Twitter FAQ's

What is Twitter?

Twitter is a service for friends, family, and coworkers to communicate and stay connected through the exchange of quick, frequent messages. People write short updates, often called "Tweets" of 140 characters or fewer. These messages are posted to your profile, sent to your followers, and are searchable on a Twitter search.

What's a Tweet?

A Tweet is any message posted to Twitter, and all are 140 characters or less.

What does it mean to follow someone on Twitter? To follow SLH?

Following someone means you've chosen to subscribe to their Twitter updates. When you follow someone, every time they post a new message, it will appear on your Twitter home page. So, if you follow SLH on Twitter, you will be able to receive updates and information from the school through your Twitter account.

Why does SLH have a Twitter account?

Social media has become an integral part of today’s society. It is our belief that incorporating Twitter as a communication tool will provide an additional avenue to connect with parents, staff, alumni, and community members in live time. It is a useful tool to share SLH events, news, and important updates. Twitter has become more and more common in educational institutions nationwide as it is used by elementary schools, middle schools, high schools, universities, and even the US Department of Education! We feel that if parents are more informed and therefore more involved in what is happening at the school, they are better able to support our students. Research shows the stronger the home-school connection, the greater likelihood of student success.

Who reads my updates?

Your followers read your Tweets. If your Tweets are public, anyone who runs a search for a keyword in your Tweet may be able to see that message.

As a parent do I need a Twitter account?

Creating a Twitter account is completely up to each individual. If you do create a Twitter account, you will be able to follow the school and see direct updates that we tweet. A Twitter account will also allow you to follow your child (see question about monitoring your child below). However, if you prefer not to or do not need to create a Twitter account as your child is younger or do not have their own account, you are able to view the school’s tweets on the website and through the Twitter feature on the district app.

Is the SLH Twitter feed secure?

YES! ONLY what is tweeted or retweeted by the school will show up publicly. Anything tweeted @SLHeights is first reviewed by the school and then a decision is made to make it public or not. Anything SLH tweets that is replied to will NOT show up publicly either. Furthermore, there is only a small handful of staff members who have access to our Twitter account in order to tweet for the school and to review tweets directed to the school.

Do our students have Twitter accounts?

Some of our students have created their own Twitter account with many having done this well before SLH launched its own Twitter feed. This is separate from the school and is in no way affiliated to SLH. We do not encourage our students to have a Twitter account without parent permission and without meeting the minimum age requirement established by Twitter, which is 13. Furthermore, the school did NOT provide our students with Twitter accounts. Twitter is blocked on all school devices used by students including Chromebooks. Students cannot access their accounts on any SLH equipment regardless of location in or out of school. Therefore, any student Twitter activity is occurring on personal and/or home devices.

As a parent, how do I monitor my child on Twitter?

It is important for parents to be vigilant and discuss Twitter with their child. Everything they tweet is public unless they adjusted their privacy settings. Parents are encouraged to review their child’s Twitter account if they have one on a regular basis. We will continue to provide education regarding digital citizenship and the impact of digital decisions as part of our technology curriculum. To review your child’s Twitter account, you can either create your own account and “follow” them or you could insist on having their username and password to allow for your periodic review of the account.

Does our staff have Twitter accounts?

Yes, some of our staff have optionally created professional Twitter accounts. They may use them to follow the school’s Twitter feed as well as to tweet out some of the amazing things happening in our classrooms. These tweets follow the same protocol outlined above. Anything tweeted @SLHeights by teachers is first reviewed and then a decision is made to make it public or not.